Here it is, Thanksgiving again. I love Thanksgiving because it brings back a lot of great childhood memories — turkey, giblet gravy, mashed potatoes, five or six desserts … the Packers and Lions doing battle on our black-and-white television set … snow flurries … the long weekend … and, best of all, family.

Most everyone loves the festive atmosphere of Thanksgiving. The spirit of this gluttonous holiday seems to put everyone in a good mood. (Except for the turkey, of course.) But, like so many of our national holidays, I doubt that many people take the time to reflect on the true purpose of this special day.

When the Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving in 1621, it was to give thanks for the bountiful harvest reaped by the Plymouth Colony following a severe winter. In modern-day terms, they saw their glass not as half empty, but half full.

In this regard, on Thanksgiving day I also find myself thinking about Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939. If you’re a sports fan, you’ve probably seen footage of that historic speech many times.

The words that most of us remember are when Gehrig said, “Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.” What an amazing statement from a person who knew that he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an insidious terminal illness that is now appropriately referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”

With Lou Gehrig’s poignant words in mind, I’d like to share with you something personal that has become a centerpiece of my life. For many years, I have made it a habit to think of every day as a day of thanksgiving by beginning each morning consciously thinking about my blessings. Like the Pilgrims, everyone’s glass is both half empty as well as half full, so I could just as easily choose to think about my misfortunes, but I don’t.

Since every negative carries with it an offsetting positive, and vice versa, you always have a choice as to whether to focus on the abundance or scarcity in your life. I choose abundance because firsthand experience has convinced me that the more you think about the negatives in your life, the more negatives you are likely to attract.

Likewise, if you want more positives in your life, focusing on the positives you already have is a great catalyst for making that happen. You’ll be amazed at the number of new positives that will almost magically make their appearance into your life if you maintain a positive mind-set.

Let me make it clear that there is nothing magical about this phenomenon. On the contrary, it’s quite scientific. What makes it possible is the fact that (1) all atoms are connected and (2) atoms vibrate at tremendous rates of speed.

That’s why, when your thoughts are positive, science works its wonders and causes those vibrating atoms in your brain to draw positive people, things, and circumstances into your life. Because you are connected to a Universal Power Source, you always have infinite power at your disposal. Even if you’re an atheist, you will find that focusing on your blessings is a cathartic way to start each day. Again, it’s a matter of science.

Whenever something “bad” happens, I try to quickly discard the negative aspects of the situation. Then I say to myself, “But … here are the offsetting positives.” Then, I describe those positives to myself in very specific terms.

If I were to make up a list of all the blessings I’ve had during my life — minor, medium, and major blessings — such a list would be in the thousands. I don’t know you personally, but I’m guessing that your list would be about as big as mine.

I realize that it’s not easy to focus on your blessings when faced with a genuine crisis such as a serious health issue, financial upheaval, or a deteriorating marriage. Nevertheless, it’s wise to remember that the more you focus on the adversities in your life, the more adversities you are likely to get.

I don’t have a double-blind study to prove it, but I can tell you from firsthand experience that being thankful for what you have every day of your life is a powerful tonic for the mind. I’m not talking about just speaking the words. I’m talking about thinking the thoughts.

Start each day by celebrating your own version of year-round thanksgiving, and it will change the way you look at life. And, as they say in quantum physics, when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!

+Robert Ringer is an American icon whose unique insights into life have helped millions of readers worldwide. He is also the author of two New York Times #1 bestselling books, both of which have been listed by The New York Times among the 15 best-selling motivational books of all time.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
I'm hosting which is fun. I'm grateful for the family I have.

And I've found it absolutely true that when I expect the positive and choose to see the positive, more positive things happen and anything negative becomes minor…like a gnat. Our brains are definitely hard wired that way. I wish I could remember the psychological term for it.

In a nutshell, when you decide you want to buy a Blue Audi A6, suddenly you see all the blue cars on the road and all the Audis and think "wow, I've never seen so many before." They were there, but your brain wasn't filtering for them.

I'm working on setting my filters to that I see more money making opportunities….and then acting on them!

From Personal Life Experience: When young and younger, I too often tried to offset the negs with a few beers in the evening that led to more than a few as a habit. And then to make sure the early hours would give me a better start I'd pop a light dose of Valium. But both are creepers. By age 50, my "devices" start to TAKE OVER! So I went through a "transition period" with the Big Help from AA, so as of 1985 I started my New & Better Life CLEAR, using no booze, no drugs. The Bridge Time was a bit difficult, but now I see that it was the Best Decision I ever made, and is probably why I'm still alive and WORKING WITH A CLEAR MIND at age 81. I say this here BECAUSE maybe some readers recognize what I describe in their own lives. My FREEDOM FROM opened my new and better, CLEAR, way to greater success and happiness. If you are where I was, maybe you would like to do likewise and live a longer, way better life. All the jagged edges are now nice n smoooth! Happy Thanksgiving!

Being thankful every day ( not just on some overcooked holiday) and celebrating life every day ( not just on a birth date) and holding our own daily mass with family and in our own hearts ( not just on Christ (mass)…. these are a few of the tenets which differentiate the thinker from a fool. Actually, the entire holiday season has become a gross commercialization of which the common man/woman's mood is manipulated into a glowing feeling of "positive" good cheer so selling a product or service becomes easier.

The bottom line is being mostly a positive person is fine so long as we are smart enough to distinguish between the right direction and the wrong way to be motivated, e.g., don't be suckered into making purchases just because of your frame of mind.

Finally, I'm thankful every time I read another good article by RJR and I hope there are many more to come in the years ahead.

I agree with your perspective, RS. Unfortunately the marketers have done their best to try and destroy the best holiday of the year, but one does not have to participate in Black Friday or any of the other hoopla. Gratitude is such an important character trait, so the holiday created to focus on that has always been my favorite, despite the fact most people just see it as a 4-day weekend, a chance to binge eat, and to go crazy spending money on stuff they really don't need or that others will soon tire of as well (if buying gifts). Wisdom is another of those great things that is all too rare these days, so yes, looking forward to wisdom from RR is a real pleasure once or twice per week.

Whenever I read about what life was like, on a daily basis, for the vast majority, as little as a few hundred years ago…this helps me to be a more thankful person.
Thanks for the reminder from all who posted. (I seem to have this habit of forgetting

Happy Thanksgiving to you, Robert, and thank you for the great and uplifting article. And a special thank you to you for all the great books and articles you have written over the last several decades. Truly something I will always be thankful to you for changing my life. I also wish all those who responded this past year to your articles a Happy Thanksgiving too, to everyone, especially RealitySeeker, Jim Hallet, Richard Van Der, and all those others who had to put up with all my bitching and carrying on about those in power I loathe, LOLS! Don't worry folks, l'll be alright……..me hopes! But, sometimes it does look very promising. I wish I could meet some of you all in person.

In case this were to be the last article before Christmas, Merry CHRISTmas to you, Robert and everyone who has commented on here this year to your articles!

Happy Thanksgiving to you, Rick G! Reading thoughtful wisdom from Robert and the thinking responses (mostly) from others who value freedom, individuality and the beauty of a mind that thinks is a highlight of the year. Yes, there are many discouraging trends, but we must remain true to our ideals, value freedom and the "Commit No Aggression" principle, and I think things will have a way of eventually working themselves out, though the process may be painful at times, just like the lessons we learn most in life are sometimes delivered in a package of pain, disappointment or tragedy of some sort. Press On!

Happy Thanksgiving to all, and special thanks and blessings to you, Robert, for your piercing insights and literate comments on the world scene. Your article fits well with the new Facebook group "Raise The Vibe". Only positive uplifting posts allowed.

Thank you and have a very happy holiday season. I have chosen no to think positive thoughts for myself but for our country and Donald Trump in particular. Like Reagan I dd not think mush of him when he began this 'crusade' for a better America but I, again, have come to realize that this man truly loves this country and is giving his all, literally, to make this a better place. Kudos to this man and his dream. I think positively every day that his dream becomes all of our dream. Each and every one of us.
But on the other hand I have found a way to channel my negative thoughts as well. I choose to send this on the way to all of the elected, hypocritical Democrats who are a plague upon all of us, Like the seven plagues of the pharaoh we must endure and overcome this tragedy in our lives. Each of us must see the the democrats for what they have become, the plague of locusts. Everything they touch and control is sadly destroyed in their continued efforts to tear this country apart. I would gladly suffer the effects of some type of bug killer if it would rid us of these parasites. But on the upside we are all now seeing them for what they are and what they have always been, little 'Bill Clintons' and just like Hillary ' I don't seem to remember that'. I hope their respective constituents gives each of them what they deserve, as it seems the halls in which they roam will not, a fitting seat on the sidelines. It is only unfortunate that these fools will still get that lifetime retirement benefit. Isn't there a way we can strip them of this and let them find some job for which they are fit, perhaps something in a striped outfit picking up trash alongside the freeways? Although most in congress all deserve this final ending as most have been there too long and have lost their way unless it has something to do with lining their pockets, I believe it is time to bring up term limits again and elect representatives who will represent us and not themselves in those once hallowed halls of our capitol. Most have already lost their way and do not see a benefit in serving us. So this weekend I am, again, most thankful for our president who doesn't need the money, ours or theirs, and is there to serve us, to do our bidding. Go Mr. President, clean up the swamp, build that wall, make each of us 'sick' of winning. You have my gratitude for making this attempt for us, whether in the long run you are completely successful or not, Thank you for trying, thank you for listening, thank you for giving us our country back. Thank you for being a man with a backbone, a love of country, and even if your are not perfect, who among us is, a man with a moral character.

Thank you Robert for a wonderful and uplifting Thanksgiving message. One more thing that I did away with last year that brought negative energy was making "To Do" lists. I changed them into making daily accomplishment lists. That now gives me something positive to celebrate each day, instead of dreading not having finished a "to to" item.

This article is a reminder of why Thanksgiving is the greatest holiday, as it celebrates what should be a DAILY habit. We all experience pain and tragedy at some point in our lives (and I know that is true for you, Robert, as well), but the quote you ended with – often repeated by the late, great Wayne Dyer – is so important. Focusing on the good things we want to experience and give to others will multiply those things in our lives, while complaining, criticizing, etc. will likewise bring more of that misery into our lives. None of us is a master, so we fall short on many occasions. Thank you so much, Robert, for all the wisdom you share each year and I trust you and your family will have had (since this is being written after the holiday) a very wonderful Thanksgiving!!